The Name of the Wind

The tale of Kvothe, from his childhood in a troupe of traveling players to years spent as a near-feral orphan in a crime-riddled city to his daringly brazen yet successful bid to enter a difficult and dangerous school of magic. In these pages, you will come to know Kvothe as a notorious magician, an accomplished thief, a masterful musician, and an infamous assassin. But this book is so much more, for the story it tells reveals the truth behind Kvothe's legend.

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A scribe arrives at a backwater inn and is certain he recognizes in the innkeeper, Kote, a legendary figure. After some negotiation, Kote agrees to tell his incredible tale over the course of three days -- from his youth spent in a traveling troupe of performers, to his days as a destitute student at the arcane university, and his underlying efforts throughout to learn the true reason his parents were murdered.

I'd had this on my to-read list for several years. I'd hoped by the time I finally picked it up book three would be imminent, but that doesn't seem to be the case, and I grew tired of waiting. Having said that, I quite enjoyed this book, and found it to be a bit different from what I had been expecting -- in a good way, though I agree with many other readers that Kvothe is just a bit too adept at everything he attempts, nearly to the point of eye-rolling on the part of the reader. Would definitely recommend to both fantasy fans and non-fans. Let's see...if I put off reading book two for a year, perhaps by then book three will have arrived.

I read and loved this years ago but never got around to reading the 2nd one in the trilogy. I finally decided I would get it read this year but realized I needed a re-fresher of The Name of the Wind first. I don't normally like to re-read but this was totally worth my time and effort and I remembered why I enjoyed it so much the first time. It is just great storytelling. I'm all set for The Wiseman's Fear and looking forward to it.

There is good writing here with excellent pacing that draws the reader into a fantasy world poised on the edge of darkness. However, there is also writing that drags and limps along, describing events in overly minute detail. The main character, Kvothe, is introduced as a middle-aged innkeeper who once held another identity long ago, one that has evolved into folk hero status across his civilization. When Kvothe is narrating his youthful memoirs to the reader, the prose takes on a fresh energy that is engaging and interesting. And the description of combat, whether between street urchins or evil, non-human characters, is sharp and thrilling. Some characters, however, are too one-dimensional. Overall, "The Name of the Wind" is a decent read and, for fantasy fans, it is worth trying.

“Words are pale shadows of forgotten names. As names have power, words have power. Words can light fires in the minds of men. Words can wring tears from the hardest hearts. There are seven words that will make a person love you. There are ten words that will break a strong man's will. But a word is nothing but a painting of a fire. A name is the fire itself.”

“I have stolen princesses back from sleeping barrow kings. I burned down the town of Trebon. I have spent the night with Felurian and left with both my sanity and my life. I was expelled from the University at a younger age than most people are allowed in. I tread paths by moonlight that others fear to speak of during day. I have talked to gods, loved women, and written songs that make the minstrels weep. You may have heard of me.”

Page 352 of the paperback: "As with all truly wild things, care is necessary in approaching them. Stealth is useless. Wild things recognize stealth for what it is, a lie and a trap. While wild things might play games of stealth, and in doing so may even occasionally fall prey to stealth, they are never truly caught by it."